Palladium Books® Weekly Update – March 22, 2012

It went to 224 pages, it is epic, and all three versions of the book are being prepped for printing:

Rifts® Lemuria soft cover edition

Rifts® Lemuria Hardcover (same color cover as the softbound book)

Rifts® Lemuria Megaverse® Insider Emerald Edition.

We don’t have release dates yet from the printer, but should by next week’s Update. However, the printer said they will try to put a rush on them. That means the soft cover edition should be available early April (I told ‘em in time for my birthday, April 2!) and the two hardcovers should be ready 2-4 weeks after the soft cover. Reminder: The two hardcovers are “limited editions” with under 200 copies of each. They were available only as pre-orders via the Megaverse Insider offer, so they are no longer available for purchase, though we may offer a few of each at the Palladium Open House and Gen Con Indy (from Palladium’s small number of extras).

Rifts® Lemuria is an outstanding book. All of us – Greg, Matthew, Chuck, Mike, Nick, Amy, Kent, Wayne, Alex and I – put our hearts and souls into this book. Heck, we even ended up adding what amounts to an additional 64 page sourcebook. We thought about chopping a hunk of the book out as a separate sourcebook in order to get Rifts® Lemuria finished sooner at the original 160 page size, but it didn’t feel right. We felt all the material belonged in one, epic book. Our expansions of Greg Diaczyk’s inspired manuscript caused some delays and cash issues, but I think you will find our labor of love to be well worth the wait.

I’m thrilled to report that everyone who has seen Rifts® Lemuria has been wowed by it. And I mean “wowed” as in blown away. I must say, there is just one cool and useful bit of source material in page after page in Rifts® Lemuria, be it magic spells, Biomancy weapons, symbiotes, weird plants, Bio-Armor, War Steeds, Hydro-Psionic abilities, O.C.C.s, R.C.C.s, exotic animals, Sea Dragons, new skills, new adventure ideas, new bad guys and new realms to explore. And most of that material can be used ANYWHERE – in land-based and underwater campaigns. Almost everything presented in Rifts® Lemuria can be ported to just about any Rifts® setting or locale.

You’ll see for yourself very soon. Meanwhile, you can get some advance looks at Rifts® Lemuria to whet your appetite until the book ships. Also see the new, updated description elsewhere in this Weekly Update.

UPDATE: Rifts® Lemuria “Sneak Preview” on DriveThruRPG.com – is available right now! You can see the cover, contents pages and enticing snippets from several different sections of the book as a FREE pdf download. Including one of the Bio-Armors, one War Steed, a few new Biomancy spells, and other good stuff. Don’t forget, there are 90+ back stock titles, including back issues of The Rifter®, and first edition rule books for Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes Unlimited™, The Mechanoid Invasion® Trilogy, and lots of other good things, one of which is the Rifts® Game Master Kit. ALL available as PDF downloads at reasonable prices on DriveThruRPG.com. And there is MORE coming. The Palladium Fantasy Game Master Kit, The Rifter® #0.1 and #0.2, maybe some PDF only sourcebooks, an Endless Dead™ Sneak Preview and other sneak previews and fun stuff are all coming your way.

UPDATE: Rifts® Lemuria “First Look” Video Review. Carmen Bellaire and William Johnson have were given the unfinished (War Steeds and Sea Dragons were only partially written and not fully developed yet) manuscript files and a small selection of artwork – in advance – so they could do a First Look Video Review of Rifts® Lemuria. There is so much source material to talk about in Rifts® Lemuria that the guys had to do two episodes to cover it all. Carmen’s favorite new O.C.C./R.C.C.? The Junk Crab. The reviews are on YouTube for your viewing enjoyment right now.

UPDATE: The Rifter® #58. Wayne is working on it tomorrow and over the weekend. It will be released in April as usual.

UPDATE: Dead Reign™ Sourcebook 3: Endless Dead™. I have already gotten back to working on the writing since Rifts® Lemuria went to the printer. This is another sourcebook that I think will delight and surprise gamers. More about it next week. It will be released in April.

UPDATE: Rifts® Vampires Soucebook. As soon as I’m done with Endless Dead™ I dive into the completion of the book. I’ll be trying hard to have it done in time for release at the Palladium Open House (May 4-6), but no promises.

UPDATE: Rifts® Miniatures. We should be offering the first batch of re-released Rifts® miniatures (Glitter Boy, CS Soldiers, Cyborgs, Kydian Overlord, etc.) as individual figures at new prices starting next Thursday.

UPDATE: Robotech® Miniatures. There seems to be a fair amount of interest from fans in Palladium doing Robotech® miniatures. We also have been approached by, I think, four different gentlemen interested in doing Robotech® miniatures with us. I hope to start giving these guys a call next week to see what they have to offer. We may also be doing a new poll in the next week or two to get a clearer idea of what gamers would like to see. We’re getting excited about the idea, but we have a long way to go, including talking to Harmony Gold about the restrictions and costs of the license. That probably means keeping the figures small, but the one sample we’ve seen from one of these gents is impressive to say the least. Looking into it, but the release of new game books is priority number at the moment.

UPDATE: Robotech®: The Genesis Pits Sourcebook. Author Irvin Jackson has been putting the final tweaks on it for a while now. He insists the delay has made it a superior book. We’re probably looking at a June release.

WHAT COMES AFTER THAT? A lot.

The Palladium Open House (May 3-6, 2012). There’s a fair amount of preparation that needs to be done, but we’re working on it and can hardly wait to see you all. I think I have the parking problem licked for this year’s event, though it may require some people to park down the street from the Palladium site (about a half a block). I hope to see a lot of gamers at this year’s event. If you can’t make it for the entire weekend, drive in for Saturday and/or Sunday.

Rifts® Black Market. We should have the cover to show you in the next Weekly Update. The book is written by Matthew Clements and Taylor White and should be a quick edit.

Rifts® Northern Gun™ One. The majority (as in 95%) is done and artists are working on artwork for it right now. All that remains are some tweaks, rewrites and additions.

Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two. Ditto.

More Rifts® miniatures, including new variations and new types.

Sourcebooks for other game lines, particularly Palladium Fantasy®, Splicers®, Nightbane®, Beyond the Supernatural™, and Heroes Unlimited™.

Comic books based on Palladium I.P.s. and other good stuff.

Something of possible interest. Palladium artist BrianManning is trying to start a business creating specialized artist products and accessories. He has co-designed their very first item, a “flat” LED, 10x13 inch, portable lightboard they are calling the FireFly Artist Light Board. To develop the product, they have launched a crowdsource funding offer and presentation through the well known and reputable company, Kickstarter.

Brian asked me to mention it in my Weekly Update, so that’s what I’m doing. If you think you might be interested in the product or in helping the guys start their new business venture, here are the links you need to do so.

I, for one, still use a lightboard for a lot of things, and I have a number of local artists who drop by the office to use the one here. I always hated the 3 inch thickness of the old-style portable lightboards, so I love the idea of a nice, flat, portable one like the FireFly that can also be used as a portable drawing-board. If I didn’t already have a light table and a couple of old-style lightboards, I’d think about buying one myself. The price point is good too. All of us at Palladium Books wish Brian and his partners great success in their new venture. (And see, everyone is using crowdsource funding. It’s the new way of doing things.)

REMINDER: Palladium Bookmarks, Set Two is available now. The new bookmarks arrived last Wednesday and look every bit as good as Set One. They feature Chaos Earth™, Phase World®, Nightbane® and Beyond the Supernatural™. The entire set is only $5. See the description elsewhere in this Weekly Update.

Gaming at the Westland Library – March 31, 2012 – Saturday from 1-4 PM. I think we are about full up. I’ve been told 20 people have pre-registered and I think that’s about all Julius and I can handle between the two of us (especially if half have never played before). Don’t know if we’ll be able to find any other local G.M.s to pitch in. Thanks for registering early. Sign up by calling the library at (734) 326-6123 or online at http://www.westlandlibrary.org/node/3089. The gaming is from 1-4 PM, Saturday, March 31, 2012. The library is located on Central City Parkway between Ford Road and Warren. If you can’t get in, don’t forget there is the Palladium Open House May 4-6. It’s not free, but it’s worth the price of admission. I’m considering a half price at the door ticket for gamers who can’t make it till after 6:00 PM Friday or Saturday night. Seems like a cool thing to offer. So if you are in the local area (and that includes Ohio and Windsor, Canada), come on down and join the fun. Meet the Palladium crew, game with the creators of our games, enjoy panel talks, and, heck, you know the drill. Come on over! This event is like nothing you’ve ever attended.

Open House Game Masters, get us your game descriptions! If you have any questions and Wayne isn’t getting back to you, contact Alex or call the office. We need your games. And reserve your hotel rooms as soon as you can. Your credit card does not get charged till the day of the event and you can cancel up to a week before. The hotel is inexpensive and excellent ($69.95 for two double beds or one king) and there will be two conference rooms (one small, one large) for all-night gaming at the hotel. NOTE: It helps Palladium if you reserve your hotel room BEFORE March 31. Thanks.

UPDATE: Kevin’s Online Toy & Collectibles Store. Alex and I have been adding all kinds of new toys and action figures to my online store. More Palladium collectibles will be added every few days, too. We’ll try to add more new items a couple times a week, every week. Right now, they include Palladium gold editions, some artwork, art prints, The Rifter® #20, and various out of print books – most of them signed. We’ll keep them coming if you keep buying them.

Rifts® World Book: Lemuria™

– At the printer

Rifts® Lemuria is packed with new magic, weapons, living power armor, monstrous war steeds, weapons, and gear suitable for landlubbers and aquatic adventurers alike.

The Lemurians are an amphibious people with floating cities and magic-based technology that allows for land and underwater adventures alike. Discover the secrets and people of this lost and forgotten civilization of magic and wonder. Add amphibious capabilities to your Rifts® campaigns and discover new menaces under the sea. Amphibious in nature, Lemurians wage war against the demonic on dry land and under the waves. Their exotic riding animals, weapons, armor and magic are suitable for use on land and underwater.

NEW! Palladium Bookmarks, Set Two

– Available now

They look great. A set of four, 2 x 6 inch bookmarks, printed on both sides, each depicting a different Palladium game line: Chaos Earth™, Phase World®, Nightbane® and Beyond the Supernatural™. They are attractive, useful and make a fun collectible. The first set has been so popular, we had to do a second.

Cat. No. 2555 – $5.00 retail. Based on what similar bookmarks sell for, we figure the set of four should have an $8.00 value, but Palladium’s price is only $5.00.

AVAILABLE NOW!

Available now! Palladium Bookmarks, Set One

“I love the Palladium bookmarks and use three of the first set all the time.” – Kevin Siembieda

A set of four, 2 x 6 inch bookmarks, each depicting a different Palladium game line: Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®, Heroes Unlimited™ and Dead Reign™. They are attractive, useful and make a fun collectible.

Cat. No. 2554 – $5.00 retail. Based on what similar bookmarks sell for, we figure the set of four should have an $8.00 value, but Palladium’s price is only $5.00.

Ship Date: Available now.

Rifts® Dimension Book™ 5: Anvil Galaxy™

– Available now – Back in print

This popular, fan-favorite Phase World® sourcebook presents a dynamic overview of the Anvil Galaxy™ and its many alien races, technologies, conflicts and secrets. A great resource for any Phase World® fan and valuable addition for campaigns involving the Minion War™.

Rifts® Sourcebook Three: Mindwerks™

– Available now – Back in print

Rifts® Mindwerks™ is a companion to Triax & The NGR™ and Triax™ 2. It details the techno-horrors of the Mindwerks Corporation and its insane mastermind, the Angel of Death, as well as providing more information on the NGR, the Gargoyle and Brodkil Empires, robots and equipment, plus the Gene-Splicers, a dozen D-Bee races, an evil Millennium Tree, mind-altering cybernetic implants and a few notable kingdoms.

14 O.C.C.s and R.C.C.s, including the Lycanmorph and Null Psyborg.

Mindwerks ‘bots, cyborgs, weapons & equipment.

Mindwerks M.O.M. conversions, Crazies and insanity.

Gene-Splicers and their presence on Rifts® Earth.

Germany’s infamous Black Forest and its evil Millenium Tree.

Massive new war machines for the Gargoyles and the NGR.

The Kingdom of Tarnow, its namesake magical crystal and anti-Gargoyle weapons and equipment.

NEW! Dead Reign™ Sourcebook 3: Endless Dead™

Ships April

Endless Dead says it all. The zombie hordes grow in number and strangeness. Can humankind survive? Where is the military? What’s next for the survivors of the zombie apocalypse?

This book contains horrifying new zombies to haunt your player characters along with new O.C.C.s and tons of tables for detailing Survivors’ Hideouts, Safe Haven Communities, Death Cults and more. Survival is not enough. Now is the time for the war against the Endless Dead™. This book is epic.

New types of zombies include the Fused Zombie, Multi-Zombie, Parasite Juggernaut and Walking Mass Grave.

New O.C.C.s include the Wheelman, Zombie Hunter, Zombie Researcher, Survivalist and Watcher.

Information on vehicles and tables for adding custom armor, weapons and anti-zombie defenses.

Rifts® Vampires Sourcebook™

Unknown to most humans, deep within Mexico the vampires have established entire kingdoms. There they live like tyrants and gods, dominating an underclass of cattle people used as slaves and food stock. Learn more about the vampires, their rivals, allies and the humans who willingly serve their supernatural masters for a chance to join the undead. A must-have guide for those who wish to travel deeper into the Vampire Kingdoms or play as vampires and their human minions.

More human kingdoms within Mexico like the Tampico Military Protectorate and Durango, the Silver City.

Firefighting robots, hover firetrucks and more anti-vampire gear.

Magic based Vampire Hunters and human strongholds.

Techno-Wizard anti-vampire weapons and magical devices.

Profiles for Doc Reid and Reid’s Rangers, the world’s most famous Vampire Hunters.

Fort Reid, an entire city devoted to hunting the undead.

The Bloodwatch, a secret vampire intelligence agency that tracks down and exterminates Vampire Hunters.

The Yucatan Peninsula, a mysterious dimensional pocket overrun by strange demons known as Xibalbans.

The return of the Mayan god Camazotz, Lord of Bats and Darkness.

The werebeasts of Mexico and Central America; those who assist the vampires and those who fight against them.

Rifts® Black Market™ – A Rifts® Sourcebook

On Rifts® Earth, the Black Market is the most prevalent trader in weapons, contraband and magic items outlawed by the Coalition. Explore the day to day business of the market along with its smuggling routes, practices, policies and nefarious products. Encounter the five major Black Market factions in North America and foreign groups like the Yakuza, Green Scarf Sect and the Underground Railroads of Atlantis and the Vampire Kingdoms.

Rifts® World Book: Northern Gun™ One

The largest independent manufacturer of weapons, robots and adventure gear in North America is Northern Gun™. Located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, they have been the premier outfitter of mercenaries and adventurers for decades, and are a major hub for hiring military contractors. With a whole new product line to offer their customers, the future looks bright for Northern Gun™.

The arms giant Northern Gun profiled for the first time!

The Kingdom of Ishpeming, a puppet-state propped up by NG.

Full 109 P.A. catalog of Northern Gun products!

New weapons, power armor, vehicles, robots and adventure gear.

The Ishpeming military, essentially a framework for hiring mercenaries and privateers.

The NG Bounty Board, the largest collection of bounties and mercenary contracts anywhere on Rifts® Earth.

Rifts® Megaverse® in Flames™

The Minion War spills across Rifts Earth, where demons and infernals hope to recruit allies and use the Rifts as gateways of destruction. Their influence shakes things up across the planet, especially at locations where demons and Deevils already have a strong presence. More details to follow, but for now, ‘nuff said.

Soulmancer and Blood Magic.

The Seven Deadly Plagues.

The Demon Plagues across the globe.

Battleground: Earth – as demons and infernals amass their legions.

Rifts Calgary – also known as Hell’s Pit; the kingdom described.

Ciudad de Diablo, Harpies’ Island and other notable Hell holes on Earth.

Lord Doom, Pain and other demonic leaders.

Horune treachery, Dimension Stormers and other villains.

Global chaos and the places most dramatically affected by the Demon Plagues.

PDF downloads from DriveThruRPG.com

This is a great resource for getting out of print Palladium titles and other select books. We’ve made 90 titles available as PDF digital downloads from DriveThruRPG.com. This is a great way to try Palladium products and get access to out of print RPG source material. Some notable titles include: